THE MIGHTY ELIJAH RETURNS

Elijah Appearing in the Kirtland Temple by Dan Lewis

Baptisms by proxy for the dead is not a new doctrine. It was practiced well and truly in the meridian of time (1 Cor 15:29). They are performed today in the temples of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints through the power of the priesthood conferred by Elijah upon Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery on April 3, 1836 in Kirtland Temple, Ohio (D&C 110:13-16).

In the fall and winter of 1892-1893, another temple was being prepared for the sacred work of salvation of the living and the dead. This was the Salt Lake City Temple. One worker, a volunteer like many others, recorded an experience he had whilst engaged in this work:

“About March 1893, I found myself alone in the dining room – all had gone to bed. I was sitting at the table when to my great surprise my old brother Alfred walked in, sat down opposite me at the table and smiled. I said to him (he looked so natural): “When did you arrive in Utah?” (He had lived in New Zealand and I had not heard from him in years.)

“He said: “I have just come from the Spirit World. This is not my body that you see, it is lying in the tomb. I want to tell you that when you were on your mission you told me many things about the Gospel, and the hereafter, and about the Spirit World being as real and tangible as the earth. I realized that you had told the truth. I attended the Mormon meetings. He raised his hand and said with much warmth: “I believe in the Lord Jesus Christ with all my heart. I believe in faith and repentance and baptism for the remission of sins, but that is as far as I can go. I look to you to do the work for me in the temple.” 

“He continued: “You can go to any kind of sectarian meeting in the Spirit World. All our kindred there knew you were trying to make up your mind to come and work on the temple. You are watched closely, every move you make is know there, and we were glad you came. We are all looking to you as our head in this great work. I want to tell you that there are a great many spirits who weep and mourn because they have relatives in the Church here who are careless and are doing nothing for them.”  He then disappeared.” (Melvin S. Tagg, The Life of Edward James Wood, an unpublished 1959 Brigham Young University Master’s Thesis, pp 107-108)

The Jewish people still wait for Elijah to return, as Malachi promised he would (Malachi 4:5). He remains an invited guest at Jewish Passover Feasts, where an open door and a vacant seat always await him. It brings tears to my eyes because there is no need to wait for him any longer.  This became the subject of conversation between Elder LeGrand Richards and the Mayor of Jerusalem, Teddy Kollek.  Elder Richards had just dedicated the Orson Hyde Memorial Garden on the Mount of Olives.  After the ceremony, the two conversed as they ate their lunch:

Elder Richards said:  "Mayor, I want to tell you something". "What's that?" asked the Mayor.

Looking Mayor Kollek directly in the eye, the apostle said: "Ten years ago I was here in Jerusalem and one day I went into three synagogues and hanging up on the wall in one of them was a large armchair.  I asked the rabbi what it was there for (I knew but I wanted him to tell me, which he did).  He said that it was so that if Elijah comes 'we can lower the chair and let him sit in it'.  Now Mayor, I want to tell you something and what I tell you is the truth.  Elijah has already been.  On the third day of April 1836 he appeared to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery in the Kirtland Temple". The Mayor said: "I guess I better tell them to take that chair down." (LeGrand Richards, Beloved Apostle, p.301)

One day in the realms of heaven, I will meet mighty Elijah, a noble man I admire so much. I will bow in adoration and thank him for his dedication to the Plan of Salvation and to the Saviour of this world.

 

ODE TO ELIJAH

You sat under the juniper tree

Sorrow spilling from

Your every memory. 

 

Valued as naught

You pleaded with God

To end your life;

But instead He gave you

Power greater than your mortal might.

 

He yielded to your words of power

And sent chariots and angels

to bring you home

In the appointed hour.

 

Dear to the heart of Him whom you served,

Your life of sacrifice and devotion

forgotten never,

Dear to our hearts in our memory,

Valued forever.

 - CATHRYNE ALLEN 

THE MIGHTY ELIJAH PART 5

The Lord is My Shepherd by LDS Bookstore

I used to think that Elijah’s mission to turn our hearts to our fathers solely meant motivation to do proxy baptisms for the dead, as was practiced in the meridian of time according to Paul who used this practice as proof to the Sadducees of the reality of resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:29). Temple work for the dead was well and truly operational in the meridian of time because of Elijah’s visit on Mount of Transfiguration conferring the priesthood power on Peter, James and John (Matt 17:3). Consider, however, how much more can be accomplished by this practice:

"Perhaps we regard the power bestowed by Elijah as something associated only with formal ordinances performed in sacred places.  But these ordinances become dynamic and productive of good only as they reveal themselves in our daily lives.  Malachi said that the power of Elijah would turn the hearts of the fathers and the children to each other.  The heart is the seat of the emotions and a conduit for revelation.  This sealing power thus reveals itself in family relationships, in attributes and virtues developed in a nurturing environment and in loving service.  These are the cords that bind families together, and the priesthood advances their development."  (James E. Faust, Father Come Home, May Ensign 1993)

Sometimes in ‘turning our hearts to our fathers’, some resolutions need to happen and most often than not they involve some form of forgiveness. Some of us hail from dysfunctional families, some from abuse, some from abandonment but all come from flawed humanity. If something is holding you back from the sealing ordinances, know that forgiveness is the key. It will free and change you and it will replace all the grief that is in your heart with unearthly love.

I know something of ‘turning the hearts to the fathers’. I struggled with a sense of powerlessness most of my life. I knew instinctly that this is not who I really am but the feeling persisted for most of my adulthood which led me to feelings of inadequacy.

 

I came to a realisation at one stage that this weakness had come to me from many generations of my family. I come from a long line of poor oppressed European peasants who had lived under the oppression of feudalism followed by socialism, the oppression which drummed into them that they could never rise above their station in life. I had seen this mentality of powerlessness perpetrated in my family throughout my childhood and early adulthood in Europe. I have known my family's negative thoughts and their beliefs that influenced their lives and invited suffering.

 

From the time my family immigrated to Australia when I was 14, and the Gospel came into my life, I could not understand why I was born into my family. I am the different one, the one that seeks and knows and loves God. One day some years ago my frustration over my life which I felt was controlled by this sense of powerlessness sent me to my knees where through bitter tears I spat out to God that I hated my family and all the generations I have come from; that I hated who they were and what they had saddled me with. I felt I could not rise to my potential because of it.

 

I had never expressed such venomous thoughts before, to myself or to others, let alone to God. I begged to understand why I was sent into this family and why I carried their burden.  Within half an hour of my prayer, my heart and mind were flooded with immense understanding.

 

When the Saviour said 'my sheep hear my voice' (John 10:27) he was referring to those who are  spiritually advanced and who, because of it, recognise and wholeheartedly embrace the truth when it is presented to them. Bruce R. McConkie taught that this is a spiritual gift that was developed in pre-earth life (Mormon Doctrine, p 81). I count myself as one of His sheep. I was brought up in a strong Catholic community but I wanted to know God and I found the religion of my youth inadequate. I was 16 years of age when I sought and immediately accepted the Gospel into my life.

 

What has all this got to do with my ancestors? It has everything to do with our hearts being turned to our fathers. It was given to me to understand that those who are His sheep are often sent to families who need a spiritual shepherd. Someone who will, through their belief, give strength to those who need to be saved from their disbelief.

 

I understood through my revelation that what once was a physical oppression of my ancestors had become a spiritual stumbling block. I understood that they still lived in a state of powerlessness even though they had passed over into the spirit world. They needed the saving grace of Christ and they needed saving. When I understood this my heart was ‘turned’ to my fathers and the saving ordinances of the priesthood took on a new meaning for me. This understanding also gave me compassion towards the generations of my family and freed me to be who I truly am and not what my programming made me to be. This energy of freedom, I am convinced, reached my ancestors where they are now and paved the path to acceptance of Christ’s gospel.

 

If you are the shepherd in your family, you stand on holy ground. You do not stand alone. The ultimate Shepherd stands beside you gathering all the sheep. You are in good company. You are the under-shepherd…..yours is a sacred work……

See Father,

I brought home the sheep!

I did all that I could

To save them in my keep.

 

They come to You Father

In whose arms they belong,

They come to You,

Whom they loved all along.

 - CATHRYNE ALLEN 

THE MIGHTY ELIJAH PART 4

 

When angel Moroni visited Joseph Smith on 21 September 1823, he told him of an important part of the restoration that will take place 13 years later. He told Joseph that the sealing power of the Priesthood will be restored to the earth by the very hand of Elijah the prophet who will ‘plant in the hearts of the children the promises made to the fathers, and the hearts of the children shall turn to their fathers’ (D&C 2:2)

This sealing power comes in two parts. The first part is the planting into our hearts the promises made to the fathers: “Who are the fathers? They are Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to whom the promises were made. What are the promises? They are the promises of a continuation of the family unit in eternity” (Bruce R. McConkie, The Millenial Messiah: The Second Coming of the Son of Man [1982], 267l; see also D&C 27:10; Doctrine and Covenants Student Manual commentary for D&C 2:2).

These eternal promises made to the fathers are known as the Abrahamic Covenant and they are:

1.       Abraham’s posterity would be numerous (see Genesis 17:5-6; Abraham 2:9; 3:14).

2.       His descendants would receive the gospel and bear the priesthood (see Abraham 2:9)

3.       Through the ministry of his seed “all the families of the earth would be blessed, even with the blessings of the Gospel, which are the blessings of salvation, even life eternal” (Abraham 2:11)

4.       Abraham’s righteous descendants will inherit the earth. Following the Millenium plus ‘a little season’ the earth will die, be resurrected and become sanctified, immortal and an eternal state where the god-fearing and the righteous shall live as celestial beings with the Father and the Son forever and ever (D&C 88:14-26, 111; McConkie, Mormon Doctrine, p 211)

“A person can receive all the blessings of the Abrahamic covenant – even if he or she is not a literal descendant of Abraham – by obeying the laws and ordinances of the gospel (see Galatians 3:26-29; 4:1-7; D&C 84:33-40)”. (Gospel Topics, LDS Gospel Library: Abrahamic Covenant). This is called ‘adoption into the House of Israel’ by baptism.

The second part of Elijah’s sealing power is the turning of our hearts to our own ancient fathers. Elder Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve said that not only has God made these promises to the ancient patriarchs but that we “undoubtedly made them to our own lineal fathers and mothers, those who came to earth before the gospel was restored but whom we promised to provide its saving ordinances” (Christ and the New Covenant 1977, p. 297). This is done by proxy in the temples that are now on the earth.

So it is through this sealing power and the saving ordinances we provide for our kindred dead that we inherit the promises of the Abrahamic Covenant. If not, the creation of this earth would be utterly wasted because a sealed, united, celestially saved family of God is the ultimate purpose of mortality and the creation of this earth. (see Jeffrey R. Holland, Christ and the New Covenant, p 297-98)

The spirit of Elijah rests upon the human family today who are actively seeking their roots. Even the ones who don’t know why, will one day give thanks to the God of this universe who made the family ties eternal and preserved the love that binds us together, now and forever…..

Your life has come and gone

But your footprints remain

And your blood courses through my veins.

Because of God’s eternal grace

We will once again embrace.

I weep not that we are now apart,

For I carry you with me,

I carry you in my heart. 

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art by AI)

THE MIGHTY ELIJAH PART 3

 

Jehovah Creates the Earth by Water Rane

The most important part of Elijah’s mission was the Melchizedek Priesthood sealing power by which things that are bound or loosed on earth are bound or loosed in heaven (D&C 128:8-18). He was the last prophet to have this power before the time of Jesus Christ.

He appeared on the Mount of Transfiguration with Moses and conferred the keys of this priesthood on Peter, James and John (Matt 17:3). He appeared again, with Moses and others, on April 3, 1836, in the Kirtland Ohio Temple and conferred the same keys upon Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery (D&C 110:13-16). It is for this purpose that he did not taste death. This was the second part of his earthly mission.

Elijah’s ascension into heaven on a chariot of fire is one of the most endearing accounts in the Old Testament. Elisha’s grief at the parting is heart rendering. As he cried after him, calling him ‘father’, he rent his clothes into pieces in his distress (2 Kings 2:11,12).

There is a significant connection between Elijah’s mission and the planet we presently live on. When Moroni delivered his message to Joseph Smith, he said that the earth would be wasted if Elijah didn’t come to restore the sealing power (D&C 2:2-3). Malachi goes so far as to say that if it were so, the Lord would smite the earth with a curse at His coming (Malachi 4:5).

Our Mother Earth which gave us physical birth (Moses 2:7) was foreordained and consecrated to establish on its face a family system patterned after the order of heaven and to become the future celestial abode of exalted sons and daughters of God. She also has a mission to accomplish like the rest of us.

Had Elijah not come to restore the sealing priesthood power to bind us together, the earth would not have accomplished its foreordained purpose and would not have been able to answer the end of its creation. All men and women would be forever without root and branch, meaning without ancestry and posterity that would otherwise extend into eternity.

Enoch learnt from his encounter with Mother Earth that she had a soul as deep as the river. Grief came  over him and made him weep when he heard her call us her children and witnessed her mourn over our wickedness (Moses 7:48). So overcome was Enoch at her suffering that he asked God three times, ‘’when shall the earth rest” (v 49,54,58).

You think the earth has no soul? Consider how she groaned when the Son of Man was lifted up and all nature suffered at the death of its creator (Moses 7:56; 1 Nephi 19: 12). Imagine this big beautiful perfect planet, the workmanship of God’s hands, with a soul as tender and real as you and I, utterly wasted at Christ’s coming…..Imagine how Father Adam and Mother Eve would feel to see this earth wasted after they paved the way for humanity by ‘the sweat of their brow’ (Moses 5:1). We think we have it hard…..we don’t even have to slice our bread…

When the end comes, this earth will be celestialized and crowned with the Father’s presence to be an eternal abode for those who will accept the sacrifice of His Beloved Son who was lifted upon the cross of redemption so that we can return to live with Him on this Mother Earth forever (D&C 88:17-20). 

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

THE MIGHTY ELIJAH PART 2

 

Elijah was called to preach repentance to one of the most evil kings of Israel.  Not only did King Ahab walk in the footsteps of his predecessor Jeroboam who turned Israel to idolatry but he did one better than that, he married Jezebel, the daughter of king of Sidonia, who worshipped Baal. Ahab turned worship of Baal into the state religion and 'did more to provoke the Lord God of Israel to anger than all the kings of Israel that were before him' (1 Kings 16:33)

 

Baal, a Phoenician deity of the Canaanites, worshipped as the god of storm who they believed had power over water, is mentioned in the Old Testament 58 times. Because the Canaanite vegetation was rich and the soil fertile, many Israelites were deceived into thinking the Canaanite god Baal regulated the water supply needed for the soil.

 

It is no wonder then that Elijah, as a fitting punishment to Israel who worshipped Baal believing he sent water to enrich their pastures and ensure their crops, sealed up the heavens for three and a half years. You would think that during three and a half years of drought, worshipping a god who was supposed to be a god of water and rain, Israel would come to their senses and realise they were on the wrong track but this did not happen. Sometimes I think we operate in mortality on the intelligence level called stupidity.

 

From the time of his proclaimed drought on the kingdom of Israel, Elijah was a wanted man and spent much of his time in hiding. So severe had the drought become that Ahab searched for him far and wide, among all nations, blaming him for the misfortune that had befallen his kingdom (1 Kings 18:10). All the nations and kingdoms Ahab searched had to swear an oath that they were not hiding him and whoever reported seeing him would be executed if Elijah was not there by the time Ahab's search party arrived (1 Kings 18:12).

 

Sealing the heavens began Elijah's life on the run dotted with miracles. He was guided in all his wanderings by the God of Israel who preserved his life. When the time came for God to show forth his power by lifting the drought, Elijah was instructed to return to Israel where he engaged in the most outlandish contest with the false prophets of Baal who failed to show forth his power in igniting the sacrifice they were offering.

 

And how did the priests of Baal do? Their greatest offering was cutting themselves ‘till blood gushed out upon them’ crying to their god for rain (1 Kings 18:28). One ancient author recorded a similar scene he observed in Gaza in Roman times:

 

“They danced along the streets to the sound of wild music, holding huge swords and bills, with whips for scouring themselves….they flew wildly one past the other: their heads sunk low towards the earth, as they turned in circles: their loose hair dragging through the dust. Presently they began to bite their arms, and next to hack themselves with the two edged swords they carried…..one of them, the leader in this frenzy, commenced to prophesy, with sighs and groans, lamenting aloud his past sins, which he would now avenge by the chastisement of his flesh. He then took the knotted whip and lashed his back, cutting himself also with his sword till the blood ran down.”  (Cunningham Geikie, Hours with the Bible, 3:399-400)

 

There is only one deranged entity who would inspire such an ungodly practice and persuade people of a sound mind to believe this could pass as a form of worship…..and we all know who that is.

 

Elijah, however, drew the hosts of Israel to him so they could properly see, repaired the altar of the Lord that had been torn down with 12 stones signifying the 12 tribes of Israel and saturated the wood and the sacrificial animal with four barrels of water, three times. He then appealed to Jehovah to show that He is the true God of Israel (1 Kings 18:37). Of course, the fire came down and consumed the whole altar with the surplus water that was in the surrounding trench (1 Kings 18:30-39). He then instructed the astonished Israelites to capture all 450 prophets of Baal, took them to the brook Kishon and slew them there (1 Kings 18:22,40). Now that’s a man of conviction!

 

Because of his un-daunting faith in the God of Israel, Elijah was blessed with power over water like Moses and Joshua and divided river Jordan prior to his ascension into heaven, never to taste death (2 Kings 2:6-11).

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art by AI)

THE MIGHTY ELIJAH PART 1

 

 

There was a prolific and significant prophet of the Old Testament whose earthly mission was divided in two time periods, before the first and second advents of Christ. His life warrants a lengthy consideration. 

 

He is known as the ancient prophet who performed many mighty miracles and who had power to control the elements. Approximately 900 years before the birth of Christ, the people of the northern kingdom of Israel had almost entirely forsaken the worship of the true God under the reign of king Ahab and had become worshippers of the Phoenician god Baal.  Enter Elijah the Tishbite who was called to lead Israel back to their forsaken God. He boldly stood up to Ahab and said: “As the Lord God of Israel liveth, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years but according to my word.” (1 Kings 17:1)

 

And so Elijah sat by the brook Cherith, before Jordan, and he drank of the brook and was fed by the ravens sent by the very God in whose name he proclaimed the draught that lasted three and a half years (1 Kings 17:2-6). When the brook dried up, the Lord led him to Zarephath to be sustained by a widow whose son he raised from the dead (vs 7-24).

 

Elijah's boldness of character would be difficult to replicate. He stands as an example of spiritual confidence of one who knows God on a personal level. Besides the power that he was entrusted with he loved the God of Israel and did everything he could to turn the people’s hearts to Him.

 

Elijah’s difficult life has touched my heart to the core. He sorrowed and he suffered through rejection, persecution and isolation and most of all he longed for heaven. When fleeing Jezebel who sought to take his life, Elijah went into wilderness and sat himself under a juniper tree and requested of God that he might die (1 Kings 19:4). The Lord instead sent him an angel who fed him and led him to mount Horeb.

 

Elijah fasted for forty days during this trip. When he arrived and the Lord asked him what he was doing there, he expressed the root cause of his sorrow: nothing about his personal hardships but that the children of Israel had forsaken the covenant and slain the prophets and that he was the only one left (vs 8-10). And then the assurance and comfort from the God he loved: “Yet I have left me seven thousand in Israel, all the knees which have not bowed unto Baal, and every mouth which hath not kissed him.” (v 18) In other words: Elijah, you have done some good even though you can’t see it.

 

And then the ultimate show of love and support……the Lord gave him Elisha. Another man of God, who denounced all his wealth and followed Elijah into his ministry. A man who became so great that a dead man cast into his sepulchre came to life again when his body touched the bones of Elisha (2 Kings 13:21). Is this not greatness???

 

How much You must love

Those who serve Thee to the end;

Who speak the words of truth

And proclaim Thy holy name.

These are Thy prophets,

Your everlasting friends:

The strong, the noble,

The devoted who hear and obey.

These are Thine angels who herald

Thy gospel and Thy name ;

To the ends of the earth they speak

And their words forever remain.

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: Elijah by Djane Daviss)

THE NEEDED MOTHER

 

According to scripture, our Mother Earth has had a very special and mandatory role in our progression. We usually think of the physical birth she gave humanity (Moses 2:7) but this is not her only role. She was foreordained and consecrated to establish on its face a family system patterned after the order of heaven and to become the future celestial abode of exalted sons and daughters of God (D&C 88:18-20).

If we study the process of creation in the Pearl of Great Price, we come away with the understanding that all the elements involved in the Creation are living organisms, including the planet we live on. What convinces me of this fact is Enoch’s encounter with Mother Earth and what impact it had on him.

The grief that took over him made him weep when he heard her call us her children and witnessed her mourn over our wickedness (Moses 7:48). So overcome was Enoch with her suffering that he asked God three times, ‘’when shall the earth rest”? (v 49,54,58). When we consider how she groaned when the Son of Man was lifted up and all nature suffered at the death of its Creator, we can conclude that her soul is as deep as the river (Moses 7:56; 1 Nephi 19: 12).

I know next to nothing about physics but I am fascinated with gravity. Without gravity we would be flying off the surface of this planet and into the unknown but gravity, like a spiritual umbilical cord keeps us grounded to Mother Earth so that we cannot be lost. The reason why she wept though over the wickedness of her children has to do with her foreordination to establish a family system of eternity. If this fails, the earth could be smitten with a curse and utterly wasted at the Saviour’s coming (D&C 2:2-3; Malachi 4:5).

Enter Elijah who came to restore the sealing priesthood power to bind us together so that the earth could answer the end of its creation (see Matthew 17:3; D&C 110:13-16; 128:8-18). Without that power all men and women would be forever without root and branch, meaning without ancestry and posterity that would otherwise extend into eternity.

Imagine this big beautiful perfect planet with a soul as tender and real as you and me, utterly wasted at Christ’s coming.  It is not our carbon foot print that would destroy our Mother Earth but our wickedness that can destroy her purpose of creation.

Imagine the waste of Creation, imagine the struggle of Father Adam and Mother Eve as they paved the way for humanity by ‘the sweat of their brow’ (Moses 5:1).  Now imagine the waste of Calvary. Yes, Elijah had to come to restore the priesthood power which could bind the root to branches but without our faithfulness the binding is null and void.

Right now we live in a world that promotes the ‘me and my truth’ mentality. Satan strives to divert us from a greater picture. We are a link in the chain of something marvelous and eternal. Each one contributes to the success of that picture. I know many of us love nature and the beauty of this earth. May we include in our daily gratitude this ‘needed mother’, this extraordinary planet that seeks to lift us to higher ground than the one we are currently standing on.

His gift, the beauty of the earth,

To soften the blow of turbulence

So relentlessly near;

With every movement of the trees

And the rustle of its leaves,

He whispers:

“I am here”

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: Made New by Chris Brazelton)

IN HIS CARE

 

“Joseph Smith “saw the Twelve Apostles of the Lamb…in foreign lands, standing together in a circle, much fatigued, with their clothes tattered and feet swollen, with their eyes cast downward, and Jesus standing in their midst, and they did not behold Him. The Saviour looked upon them and wept. (Joseph Smith, “History of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints” 2:381)

“In this same panoramic vision, the Prophet Joseph saw Elder Brigham Young standing in a strange land….in a desert place, upon a rock in the midst of about a dozen men…who appeared hostile. He was preaching in their own tongue, and the angel of God standing above his head, with a drawn sword in his hand, protecting him, but he did not see it. (“History of the Church 2:381)

“For an unforgettable picture of the unseen angelic armies that protect God’s faithful children, think of Elisha’s frightened young servant who cried when he was surrounded by an ominous army, “Alas, my master! How shall we do?”  Answered Elisha, “Fear not: for they that be with us are more than they that be with them.” ….And the Lord opened the eyes of the young man and he saw: and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha.”  (2 Kings 6:15-17)

“….when we, like the young servant, feel overwhelmed and surrounded by enemies and troubles, there comes the comforting assurance: The Lord will not leave me alone.”

-          Bruce C. Hafen, “The Believing Heart”, p 102-3

“….I say unto you that mine eyes are upon you. I am in your midst and ye cannot see me”  (D&C 38:7)

Angels are you near me

To catch me if I fall?

Do you stand guard at the entrance

Of my heart

On God’s errand and sentinel’s call?

 

Do you pave the way

And steady my feet,

And ensure my enemy’s defeat?

 

You are unsung heroes

Of every journey’s flight

You are phantoms of love

Concealed from mortal sight.

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: In the Arms of an Angel by Danny Hahlbohm)

OUR BROTHER'S KEEPER

When I study the scriptures I am often amazed at the zeal with which the prophets of old preached repentance and how tirelessly they laboured for the House of Israel. Equally impressive, in a devastating way, is the stubbornness of people to repent and heed warnings of impending destruction. Very often the picture we get through scriptures of missionary labours is bleak and converts seem very few and far between, so the admiration for the prophets grows even more as their labours seem futile. Elijah was so depressed about his seemingly lack of success that he fled from the murderous intentions of wicked Jezebel and sat under the juniper tree "requesting for himself that he might die" (1 kings 18:4). Imagine the very government of your country seeking your head. This was the fate of Elijah who fled before the most evil queen history has ever known. So Elijah went to Horeb (Mount Sinai) and fasted 40 days and 40 nights (1 Kings 19:8) when his request for death was not granted. The  Lord enquired of him what he was doing there and Elijah said he had laboured zealously for the Lord because the children of Israel had forsaken the covenant, thrown down the Lord's altars and slain his prophets and that he alone was left while they sought his life (1 Kings 19:14). It makes you want to weep, doesn't it? Now here comes the interesting part. The Lord gave Elijah a most unexpected path to hope. He informed him that He had yet 7,000 Israelites who have not bowed down to Baal in heathen worship and whose lips had not kissed this abhorrent idol (1 kings 19:18). Seven thousand people who have remained true to the God of Israel. That's a lot of people!

Now consider the missionary labours of Abinadi in the court of the wicked king Noah. He was persecuted, bound, scourged and burnt to death.  Nobody believed anything he said, "but there was one among them whose name was Alma" (Mosiah 17:2) and we might say, the rest is history.....from one convert came thousands, the most significant of which was Alma the Younger; high priest, chief judge, military leader. Alma the Younger, who once went about with the intent to destroy the Church became Alma who led the Nephite armies in battle, who sat naked with Amulek in dungeons, who was spat upon by the unrepentant, who dumbfounded an anti-christ,  and who baptised thousands of souls unto repentance (Alma 4:4,5).

It seems that in our day and age wickedness and disobedience to God reigns supreme in and out of the Church yet we need not feel discouraged. The House of Israel will endure forever. The Lord will make sure of that. We of modern Israel have been promised that the spirit of the Lord will be poured down upon us and "sons and daughters will prophesy - preach, exhort, pray, and instruct so as to benefit the Church. Direction and revelation will be given. Young men and women who are representatives of the Lord will be inspired. The gifts of teaching and inspiration will be given to all classes and levels of people......the Lord will pour out His Spirit upon them, and they will be endowed with the gifts necessary to convert sinners and to build up the Church". (Old Testament Student Manual 1 Kings-Malachi, pp 85-86). This prophecy was given by Joel (Joel 2:28).

Our purpose is clear, the strong are to succor the weak. For we are our brother's keeper. We are the powerful ones. We are Israel. We are Ephraim. We are the Church of the Firstborn. We will be gathered from the four corners of the earth. We will endure calamities. We will conquor the enemy of all righteousness. We will usher in the Millenium. We will be caught up to meet Him. Well might we say:

Hurrah, Hurrah for Israel!

"And ye shall know that I am 

in the midst of Israel,

and that I am the Lord your God,

and none else;

and my people shall never be ashamed."

(Joel 2:27)

THE MANTLE OF A PROPHET

When Elisha's call came to follow Elijah and dedicate himself to the prophetic calling, he was knee deep in plowing with 12 yoke of oxen. He clearly came from a wealthy family. He had work to do, crops to plant, a family to support, yet his willingness to give up everything so he can serve God was perfect. Before he set off he ensured the Lord knew his commitment was complete by making a break with his past life. He slaughtered the oxen and destroyed the farming implements. He then built a fire with the plowing equipment and cooked the oxen and gave it to people to eat (2 Kings 19:21). How symbolic this gesture, showing that he was willing to serve others and give to them his all. Contrast this with the rich young ruler in Matthew 19 who also was rich. When the Saviour told him to sell all that he had and give it away to the poor and follow him, the rich man, unlike Elisha, walked away.

Before Elijah was translated he asked Elisha what request he had of him and Elisha said: "I pray thee, let a double portion of thy spirit be upon me" (2 Kings 2:9). Having witnessed Elijah's mighty miracles and his acts of service, he no doubt felt inadequate to fill Elijah's shoes. Elijah replied that if Elisha gets to witness his departure, that will be a sign to him that it will be as he desired. This indeed did happen for Elisha came to witness Elijah's ascension and the desire of his heart was fulfilled. His ministry lasted more than 50 years and was very similar in nature to that of his master teacher. Among his many prophecies as Israel's prophet, he achieved the following:

• He parted river Jordan (2 Kings 2:8)
• He healed and provided continual water (2 Kings 2:19-22, 2 Kings 3:9, 16-20)
• He changed water's appearance to blood (2 Kings 3:22)
• He multiplied the widow's oil (2 Kings 4:2-7)
• He raised the widow's son from the dead (2 Kings 4:32-35)
• He healed food that was poisonous (2 Kings 4:40-41)
• He healed Namaan of leprosy (2 Kings 5:14)
• He caused the sunken ax head to float (2 Kings 6:5-7)
• He caused blindness to come upon the Syrian army (2 Kings 6:18-24)
• He fed 100 men with only twenty loaves and some grain and had food left over (2 Kings 4:42-44)
• He prophesied the future

Of all his mighty works, my favourite is Elisha's ability to blind the whole of Syrian army and lead them into Samaria as hostages. Syria attacked Israel several times but was always defeated. When it finally came to the attention of the king of Syria that his soldiers were losing because of the prophetic power of Elisha, he sent a large army to destroy him. The Syrian army located Elisha in Dotham (2 Kings 6:13) where they surrounded the city so that he could not escape. The next morning Elisha's servant panicked when he saw the vastness of the army that had come to destroy his master. Elisha, unperturbed, comforted his servant by saying: "Fear not: for they that be with us are more than they that be with them" (2 Kings 6:16). He then called upon the Lord to open the servant's eyes so that he could see the heavenly hosts that were there to protect them for "behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha" (2 Kings 6:17). Elisha then prayed that the army would be smitten with blindness and the Lord complied following which Elisha led the whole army into Samaria and into the hands of the king of Israel and instructed him to feed them and send them back to their master. Syrians never came into the land of Israel again (2 Kings 6:23).

Another mesmerizing story involving Elisha was recited by Elder Orson Hyde. So afflicted was the northern kingdom of Israel with a famine that people were selling and eating mules' heads and dove's dung. The famine became so severe that some resorted to cannibalism. In 2 Kings 6:28-29 we read of an account of two women who one of their sons. Elisha's prophecy regarding the famine is as follows:

"Once there was a great famine in Samaria and so sore was that famine that a mule's head sold for four score pieces of silver in the market and a cab of dove's dung sold for food in the market, I cannot recollect for how much. We should consider it pretty much of a task or penalty to be compelled to use an article like that for food, but the people of Samaria were sorely distressed with famine, and which way to turn to save themselves they knew not. About this time, the King of Syria, with a large army, came to besiege the city and there was a mighty host of them, and they brought everything in the shape of food that was necessary for the comfort and happiness of man; and although the famine was so sore among the Samaritans, the old Prophet, Elisha..., told them that on the next day meal should be sold in the gate of their city at very low figures, lower than it had ever been known to be sold before. A certain nobleman, who heard the prophecy of Elisha expressed his doubt of its truth, and he said that if the windows of heaven were opened and meal poured down from above, it could not fall to such low figures. Now see what he got by doubting the words of the Prophet - said Elisha to him - 'Your eyes shall see it, but you shall not taste it'. That night the Lord sent forth the angels of his presence and they made a rustling in the trees, and sounds like horses' hoofs and chariots, as if the whole country had combined to go out to battle against the Syrians, and they did not know what to make of it, and they were frightened and fled, leaving almost everything they had brought with them in the borders of the town; and as they went, the rustling of the trees and the noise of the horses and chariots seemed to pursue them, and in order to make their burdens as light as possible, they threw away everything they had with them, and their track was strewed with everything good and desirable. The next morning the people of Samaria went out and brought the spoils into the market, and it was overstocked with provisions and the word of the Lord through the Prophet was fulfilled. Now you see, the Lord knew they had eaten mules' heads long enough and that they had need of something more palatable; he had had the matter under advisement, no doubt, when the crusade was inaugurated against the people of Samaria, and he, in all probability, inspired them to take abundant supplies, that they might feel all the more confident on account of their great numbers being so well provided for. They no doubt calculated that they had the sure thing, little thinking that God was making them pack animals to take to his people what they needed. Their Father in heaven knew that they had need of them, and he sent them, and the people of Samaria brought them into market, and behold and lo the multitude rushed together just as hungry people will, and this nobleman came out also, and he was trodden down under foot and stamped to death - he saw it but he never tasted it. That is the reward of those who disbelieve the Prophets of God; it was so then, and if the same thing does not occur in every instance something of a similar character is sure to take place. There was no living faith in that man, he could not believe the testimony of the Prophets, and in this he was like some of our - what shall I say, great men, whose faith is weak and sickly, and they think they know it all, and can chalk out right and left that which would be best for building up the kingdom of God." (Journal of Discourses, 17:6-7)

"In a similar prophecy, Heber C. Kimball prophesied that the Saints in the Salt Lake Valley would be able to purchase goods more cheaply than they could back East. The prophecy was fulfilled when thousands came through the valley during the California gold rush". (See B.H. Roberts, A Comprehensive History of the Church, 3:349-53, Old Testament Student Manual, 1 Kings to Malachi, p 77)

At times it seems easier to believe in the prophets who have passed on than to believe in the living oracles and follow the counsel and direction they give for our day and time: "Sometimes modern Saints fall into the same traps as did ancient Israel. Have you heard people extol the teachings of Joseph Smith but murmur and criticize current Church leaders for a statement or a stand they take that contradicts the individual's personal ideas or preference? Do we say we honour the prophets and yet not follow their instructions from the last general conference? Some who read the Old Testament have a tendency to shake their heads sorrowfully over those proud and rebellious people. But the great value of our studying this work is that it provides a clear standard for measuring our own behaviour." (Old Testament Student Manual, 1 Kings - Malachi, p 65)

"She couldn't stand still. The mention of a living prophet had aroused in her a great enthusiasm. As I continued the lesson, the woman was up again and again, her hands flying as she asked for clarification and elaboration. She wanted to know everything she could about David O. McKay and his calling.
'He's a prophet', I repeated. 'Like Jeremiah or Moses or Peter'. The concept was powerful and she wanted desperately to understand.
'How does a man get to be a prophet?' she asked.
I spoke then of years of preparation, and talked to her of obedience and faithfulness and study and prayer and service - those qualities that enabled a man to fulfill such a calling.
'But the most important requirement is that he be called of God' I explained, 'because he receives revelation from the Lord and delivers it to the people. He speaks to us the words and the will of God.'
'How?'
'Pardon me?'
'How does he speak to you?' she asked. 'I mean, how does he let you know what the Lord says and what he expects? When he has a message, how does he deliver it?'
This was a missionary's dream. In nineteen months of proselyting and teaching I had never seen anyone so excited about the restoration of the gospel and the idea of a living prophet. She seemed aflame with a need to know the present word of God.
'Every six months, the Church holds a General Conference' I said. 'People attend from all over the world, and President McKay speaks, usually three or four times, during the three days of the conference'.
I could see in her eyes a great desire to sit and listen to the living words of a living prophet.
'But does everyone attend?' she asked. Then thinking of herself, she added, 'What about those who can't come to conference?'
I smiled. This woman was a joy to teach.
'The Church publishes a magazine called the Improvement Era' I responded. 'A month or two after conference, the entire proceedings of the conference are published in one of the issues. Everyone who wants to can get a copy and read the talks'.
But there was more, and speaking of the magazine had reminded me.
'That isn't all'. I was nearly as excited as she was now.
'Every month President McKay writes the editorial in the Improvement Era. Every month we get a written message from the Prophet of God'.
'That's wonderful!' she exclaimed, and I agreed. In my mind the faucets were running, the baptismal font already filling. She said she had one more question. I didn't mind. After nineteen months as a missionary, I could answer any question about living prophets that an investigator could ask. Any question, that is except this one. As she spoke, I saw the plug being pulled, the water draining from the font.
Her eyes shining with delight and anticipation, she said:
'What did he say last month?'

I could not answer her question. I knew that President McKay had been writing the editorials for the Improvement Era during most of the years of my life. But I had never read a single one of them."

- Ted Gibbons

"If we listened to the prophets of this day, poverty would be replaced with loving care for the poor and needy. Many serious and deadly health problems would be avoided through compliance with the Word of Wisdom and the laws of sexual purity. Payment of tithing would bless us and we would have sufficient for our needs. If we follow the counsel given by the prophets, we can have a life in mortality where we do not bring upon ourselves unnecessary pain and self-destruction. This does not mean we will not have any challenges. We will. This does not mean we will not be tested. We will, for this is part of our purpose on earth. But if we will listen to the counsel of our prophet, we will become stronger and be able to withstand the tests of mortality. We will have hope and joy. All the words of counsel from the prophets of all generations have been given so that we may be strengthened and then be able to lift and strengthen others."

(Robert D. Hales, Hear The Prophet's Voice and Obey, Ensign, May 1995, p 17)

THE MIGHT OF ELIJAH

I am in awe of Elijah. He would have to be the most prolific of all the Old Testament prophets and the most significant. Elijah made such a deep impression upon the life of the Israelites that it is their fixed belief that he will return one day and to this day he remains an invited guest at the Passover, for whom a vacant seat is reserved and the door is opened. Among his many significant earthly accomplishments, Elijah holds the sealing power of the Melchizedek Priesthood and was the last prophet to do so before the time of Jesus Christ. He appeared on the Mount with Moses and conferred the keys of the priesthood on Peter, James and John (Matt 17:3) and he appeared again with him and others on 3 April, 1836, in the Kirtland Temple in Ohio and conferred the same keys upon Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery. "Thus the keys of his power are once again operative on the earth and are used in performing all the ordinances of the gospel for the living and the dead". (Bible Dictionary, p 664) What an incredibly important person Elijah is for where would mankind be without the saving ordinances of the priesthood and the sealing power which keeps our families intact forever. Imagine the honour of having your name associated with the responsibility of 'turning the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers' (Malachi 4:5,6). Imagine being remembered throughout history by something as powerful and important as 'the spirit of Elijah'. It should be an absolute joy for us to study his life so we can appreciate fully the making of this great man.

Elijah is known as the prophet of fire who performed many mighty miracles and who had power to control the elements. When the people of the northern kingdom had almost entirely forsaken the worship of the true God and become worshippers of the Phoenician god Baal, Elijah the Tishbite was most appropriately called to lead Israel back to their forsaken God for the name Elijah means 'Jehovah is my God'. "His recorded words are few but forceful, and his deeds are explicit evidences of his strength of will, force of character, and personal courage. He was an example of solid faith in the Lord." (Bible Dictionary, p 664)

Elijah's boldness of character would be difficult to replicate. He stands as an example of spiritual confidence of one who knows God on a personal level. He was called to preach repentance to one of the most evil kings of Israel, as the scriptures record: "And Ahab, the son of Omri did evil in the sight of the Lord above all that were before him." (1 Kings 16:30)  Not only did he walk in the footsteps Jeroboam who turned Israel to idolatry but he did one better than that, he married Jezebel, the daughter of king of Zidonia, who worshipped Baal. He made a grove for the worship of Baal and 'did more to provoke the Lord God of Israel to anger than all the kings of Israel that were before him' (1 Kings 16:33)  Baal was the Phoenician deity and pre-eminent god of the Canaanites and is mentioned in the Old Testament 58 times. He was worshipped as the god of storm who had power over water. In the words of one LDS scholar: "Canaanite vegetation, particularly in the north, was rich and the soil fertile. Consequently many Israelites were tempted to ask their Canaanite neighbours, 'How does your garden grow?' The Israelites were deceived into thinking the Canaanite storm god Baal regulated the water supply. Thus, the question of who controlled the water became critical issue, particularly in the northern kingdom. The allegiance of Israel vacillated among many idolatrous gods, but primarily between the two gods who claimed power over water: Baal, the Canaanite storm god, and the Lord Jehovah, who had delivered the Israelites" (Fred E. Woods, "The Water Imagery in John's Gospel", in The Lord of the Gospels: The 1990 Sperry Symposium on the New Testament, p 190). It is no wonder then that Elijah, as a fitting punishment to Israel who worshipped Baal believing he sent water to enrich their pastures and ensure their crops, sealed up the heavens for three and a half years. You would think that during three and a half years of drought, worshipping a god who was supposed to be a god of water and rain, Israel would come to their senses and realise they were on the wrong track but this did not happen.

From the time of his proclaimed drought on the kingdom of Israel, Elijah was a wanted man and spent much of his time in hiding. So severe had the drought become that Ahab searched for him far and wide, among all nations, blaming him for the misfortune that had befallen his kingdom (1 Kings 18:10). All the nations and kingdoms Ahab searched had to swear an oath that they were not hiding him and whoever reported seeing him would be executed if Elijah was not there by the time Ahab's search party arrived (1 Kings 18:12). Sealing the heavens began Elijah's life on the run dotted with miracles. From the ravens which fed him by the brook Cherith to the poor window of Zarephath in Zidon who fed him and never went without again and whose son Elijah raised from the dead, he was guided in all his wanderings by the God of Israel who preserved his life. When the time came for God to show forth his power once again by lifting the drought, Elijah was instructed to return to Israel where he engaged in the most outlandish contest with the false prophets of Baal who failed to show forth Baal's power in igniting the sacrifice they were offering. Elijah, however, drew the hosts of Israel to him so they could properly see, repaired the altar of the Lord that had been torn down with 12 stones signifying the 12 tribes of Israel and saturated the wood and the sacrificial animal with four barrels of water, three times. He then appealed to Jehovah to show that He is the true God of Israel (1 Kings 18:37). Of course the fire came down and consumed the whole altar with the surplus water that was in the surrounding trench (1 Kings 18:30-39). He then instructed the astonished Israelites to capture all 450 prophets of Baal, took them to the brook Kishon and slew them there (1 Kings 18:40).

With Jezebel at his heels seeking his life, Elijah fled again. What follows is I believe the most intimate and loving experience Elijah had with the Lord. Running away from those who sought his life, he received sustenance from an angel of the Lord. When he arrived to mount Horeb, so incredibly disheartened and dejected, believing he had failed in his ministry, God in his mercy spoke to him, but not by the wind which rent mountains and not by the earthquake which followed, but by a 'still small voice' (1 Kings 19:12). In other words, not by any ostentatious show of power but by something so personal as the whisper of His voice. He might as well have said: 'they can have their miracles Elijah, but you have me'. And here is where the God of us all knows how to lift us up. To prove to Elijah that he had done well and that his service as a prophet was accepted, the Lord assigns him another mission. He instructs him to go and anoint the king of Syria and the next prophet who will take over from him. What a merciful and loving God who accepts the work of his faithful children and who cares about the tender feelings of their hearts. I imagine Him saying to Elijah: "You did well Elijah, you are still the prophet and your service has been accepted". Because of his un-daunting faith in the God of Israel, Elijah was blessed with power over water like Moses and Joshua and divided river Jordan prior to his ascension into heaven, never to taste death (2 Kings 2:6-11).

"The story of Elijah's return can be found in D&C 110.  Obviously there is no need to wait for him any longer.  This became the subject of conversation between Elder LeGrand Richards and the Mayor of Jerusalem, Teddy Kollek.  Elder Richards had just dedicated the Orson Hyde Memorial Garden on the Mount of Olives.  After the ceremony, the two conversed as they ate their lunch:
Elder Richards said:  "Mayor, I want to tell you something".
"What's that?" asked the Mayor.
Looking Mayor Kollek directly in the eye, the apostle said:
"Ten years ago I was here in Jerusalem and one day I went into three synagogues and hanging up on the wall in one of them was a large armchair.  I asked the rabbi what it was there for (I knew but I wanted him to tell me, which he did).  He said that it was so that if Elijah comes 'we can lower the chair and let him sit in it'.  Now Mayor, I want to tell you something and what I tell you is the truth.  Elijah has already been.  On the third day of April 1836 he appeared to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery in the Kirtland Temple".
The Mayor said:
"I guess I better tell them to take that chair down."

(Beloved Apostle, p.301)